Huge Flock of Minisatellites Aims to Photograph the Entire Earth Every Day

Slide: 1 /of 26.Caption: Caption: San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA. July 23, 2014.
The southernmost portion of the San Francisco Bay contains a number of salt ponds and levee trails. Cutting through several nature reserves, the Dumbarton bridge connects East Palo Alto and Fremont. Facebook’s campus can be seen in the lower left.Planet Labs

Slide: 2 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Três Marias Reservoir, Minas Gerais, Brazil. July 31, 2014.
The Represa Três Marias, the result of damming the São Francisco river, is one of the largest reservoirs in Brazil. In 2014, Minas Gerais experienced one of the worst droughts of the last 50 years. The lower water level can be seen by using the compare tool.Planet Labs

Slide: 3 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Bohai Sea Aquaculture, China. August 12, 2014.
Rectangular ponds along the coast of China’s Bohai Sea indicate the presence of aquaculture. Species farmed in the area include shrimp, sea cucumber, and abalone. The inland landscape is also intensively farmed, featuring small villages surrounded by fields.Planet Labs

Slide: 4 /of 26.Caption: Caption: New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. October 5, 2014.
While the Mississippi River is the lifeblood of New Orleans—providing access to the interior of North America from the Gulf of Mexico—it is also a threat. A system of levees along the river protects the center of the city from flooding and hurricane storm surges.Planet Labs

Slide: 5 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Irrigated Fields, Arizona, USA. August 16, 2014.
Dark green fields stand out against the pale desert floor in Pinal County, Arizona. The region’s farms rely on irrigation, since they receive less than 10 inches of rain a year. Irrigation water comes from two main sources: the Colorado River and aquifers.Planet Labs

Slide: 6 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Arkhangelsk, Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. August 5, 2014.
Here we can see the center of Arkhangelsk, a Russian city at the top of the Northern Dvina River delta, which flows into the nearby White Sea.Planet Labs

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Slide: 7 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Castaic Reservoir, California, USA. August 5, 2014.
The shoreline of Castaic Lake, a reservoir northwest of Los Angeles, hints at the extent of California’s ongoing drought. As of August 5, 2014, the reservoir was only 46 percent full, compared to the historical average of 55 percent.Planet Labs

Slide: 8 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Desertification Control Project, Ningxia, China. July 14, 2014.
Agricultural lands abut the Yellow River, just outside of Touzha in Pingluo County, China. This is part of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region in Northwestern China, where a desertification control project is under way to preserve agricultural lands.Planet Labs

Slide: 9 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Airport, Beijing, China. July 25, 2014.
Beijing Capital International Airport Terminal 3 was built for the 2008 Olympic Games, and is now the second largest airport terminal in the world. The airport itself is an exclave of the Chaoyang District, but the area surrounding it is the suburban Shunyi district.Planet Labs

Slide: 10 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Lake Diefenbaker, Saskatchewan, Canada. September 1, 2014.
Filled in 1967, Lake Diefenbaker is a 140-mile-long reservoir along the South Saskatchewan and Qu’Appelle Rivers. Diefenbaker is renowned for harboring extremely large fish: the world record rainbow trout (48 lbs) and burbot (25 lbs) were both caught in the lake.Planet Labs

Slide: 13 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA, August 16, 2014.
The red, sediment-filled Colorado River contrasts with blue-green Havasu Creek in Grand Canyon National Park. The Colorado River is almost always red in spring and summer, since it collects silt from a huge watershed. Short tributaries usually run clear.Planet Labs

Slide: 14 /of 26.Caption: Caption: St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. July 24, 2014.
This coastline on Lake Ontario stretches from the western side of St. Catharines, the largest city in the Niagara region of Ontario, Canada. The Queen Elizabeth Way runs right by the water, heading to Toronto.Planet Labs

Slide: 15 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Burning Fields, Itumbiara, Brazil. August 9, 2014.
In this August 9th Planet Labs image, a large field is burning near Itumbiara, Brazil.Planet Labs

Slide: 16 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Evaporate Mine, Inner Mongolia, China. July 26, 2014.
The basin of Baga Nur, a former salt lake south of Ordos in Inner Mongolia, is mined for salt. Inner Mongolia is rich in rare earth resources and mineral deposits, so many evaporate mines like the one pictured have been built.Planet Labs

Slide: 17 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Circular Fields, Şanlıurfa Province, Turkey. October 5, 2014.
Farmers in the Fertile Crescent have relied on irrigation since the dawn of agriculture. Water from reservoirs developed on the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in the past 25 years enabled the expansion of cropland in the region, including these circular fields in Turkey.Planet Labs

Slide: 18 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Wuzhong, Ningxia, China. August 14, 2014.
Wuzhong is a rapidly-growing city located in north-central China. The dense urban core is surrounded by fields, likely rice paddies. Irrigation water is brought to the otherwise arid region by the sediment-filled Yellow River, to the northwest (above and left) of the city.Planet Labs

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Slide: 19 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Ocotillo Wind Project, California, USA. September 22, 2014.
The 80-meter-tall turbines of the Ocotillo Wind project cast long shadows across the Imperial Valley’s desert floor on the morning of Sep. 22, 2014. Each of the 112 turbines is capable of generating 2.37 megawatts of power, for a maximum output of 265 megawatts.Planet Labs

Slide: 20 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Suez Canal, Ismailia, Egypt. July 10, 2014.
Ships head north through the Suez Canal, passing by Izbat Abu Sitayt between Lake Timsah to the north, and Great Bitter Lake to the south. The Isamilia Canal, or Sweet Water Canal, runs parallel to the Suez Canal and supplies water to the surrounding regions.Planet Labs

Slide: 21 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Longyangxia Dam Solar Park, China. September 29, 2014.
Blue squares in an otherwise empty desert demarcate one of the world’s largest solar power plants. The solar portion of the Longyangxia hydro-solar project, located in China’s Qinghai Province, generates up to 320 Megawatts of power.Planet Labs

Slide: 22 /of 26.Caption: Caption:
Coal Mines, Shanxi Province, China. July 31, 2014.
The town of Jingping is surrounded by a few large coal mines. China is the largest coal producer in the world, and Shanxi Province contains most of China’s easily accessible coal, producing more than 300 million metric tonnes annually.Planet Labs

Slide: 23 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Comondú-La Purísima Volcanic Field, Mexico. October 1, 2014.
Mexico’s Baja California is home to several clusters of volcanoes, including the Comondú-La Purísima volcanic field. Eruptions in the area began about 11 million years ago, and the most recent may have occurred within the past 12,000 years.
Planet Labs

Slide: 24 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Wadi Dib Ring Complex, Egypt. October 1, 2014.
It may look like an impact crater, but instead of being the scar from an incoming meteorite, the Wadi Dib ring complex came from within the Earth itself. The circular structure is the result of an upwelling of magma that solidified into a series of different rock types.Planet Labs

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Slide: 25 /of 26.Caption: Caption: North of Bakersfield, California, USA. August 5, 2014.
In this image of agricultural fields north of Bakersfield, there is a stark contrast between the irrigated fields and the adjacent ravine-ridden desert. Bakersfield has been the hardest-hit large urban area by the current drought.Planet Labs

Slide: 26 /of 26.Caption: Caption: Diyarbakir, Southeastern Anatolia, Turkey. July 14, 2014.
This image captures agricultural lands along the Tigris River, and Diyarbakir’s famous walls, which ring the old city. Made out of basalt, the walls were built during the Byzantine Empire. Recently completed additions to the Diyarbakir Airport are also visible.Planet Labs

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Slide: 1 /of 26Caption: Caption: San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA. July 23, 2014.
The southernmost portion of the San Francisco Bay contains a number of salt ponds and levee trails. Cutting through several nature reserves, the Dumbarton bridge connects East Palo Alto and Fremont. Facebook’s campus can be seen in the lower left.Planet Labs

Slide: 2 /of 26Caption: Caption: Três Marias Reservoir, Minas Gerais, Brazil. July 31, 2014.
The Represa Três Marias, the result of damming the São Francisco river, is one of the largest reservoirs in Brazil. In 2014, Minas Gerais experienced one of the worst droughts of the last 50 years. The lower water level can be seen by using the compare tool.Planet Labs

Slide: 3 /of 26Caption: Caption: Bohai Sea Aquaculture, China. August 12, 2014.
Rectangular ponds along the coast of China’s Bohai Sea indicate the presence of aquaculture. Species farmed in the area include shrimp, sea cucumber, and abalone. The inland landscape is also intensively farmed, featuring small villages surrounded by fields.Planet Labs

Slide: 4 /of 26Caption: Caption: New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. October 5, 2014.
While the Mississippi River is the lifeblood of New Orleans—providing access to the interior of North America from the Gulf of Mexico—it is also a threat. A system of levees along the river protects the center of the city from flooding and hurricane storm surges.Planet Labs

Slide: 5 /of 26Caption: Caption: Irrigated Fields, Arizona, USA. August 16, 2014.
Dark green fields stand out against the pale desert floor in Pinal County, Arizona. The region’s farms rely on irrigation, since they receive less than 10 inches of rain a year. Irrigation water comes from two main sources: the Colorado River and aquifers.Planet Labs

Slide: 6 /of 26Caption: Caption: Arkhangelsk, Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. August 5, 2014.
Here we can see the center of Arkhangelsk, a Russian city at the top of the Northern Dvina River delta, which flows into the nearby White Sea.Planet Labs

Slide: 7 /of 26Caption: Caption: Castaic Reservoir, California, USA. August 5, 2014.
The shoreline of Castaic Lake, a reservoir northwest of Los Angeles, hints at the extent of California’s ongoing drought. As of August 5, 2014, the reservoir was only 46 percent full, compared to the historical average of 55 percent.Planet Labs

Slide: 8 /of 26Caption: Caption: Desertification Control Project, Ningxia, China. July 14, 2014.
Agricultural lands abut the Yellow River, just outside of Touzha in Pingluo County, China. This is part of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region in Northwestern China, where a desertification control project is under way to preserve agricultural lands.Planet Labs

Slide: 9 /of 26Caption: Caption: Airport, Beijing, China. July 25, 2014.
Beijing Capital International Airport Terminal 3 was built for the 2008 Olympic Games, and is now the second largest airport terminal in the world. The airport itself is an exclave of the Chaoyang District, but the area surrounding it is the suburban Shunyi district.Planet Labs

Slide: 10 /of 26Caption: Caption: Lake Diefenbaker, Saskatchewan, Canada. September 1, 2014.
Filled in 1967, Lake Diefenbaker is a 140-mile-long reservoir along the South Saskatchewan and Qu’Appelle Rivers. Diefenbaker is renowned for harboring extremely large fish: the world record rainbow trout (48 lbs) and burbot (25 lbs) were both caught in the lake.Planet Labs

Slide: 13 /of 26Caption: Caption: Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA, August 16, 2014.
The red, sediment-filled Colorado River contrasts with blue-green Havasu Creek in Grand Canyon National Park. The Colorado River is almost always red in spring and summer, since it collects silt from a huge watershed. Short tributaries usually run clear.Planet Labs

Slide: 14 /of 26Caption: Caption: St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. July 24, 2014.
This coastline on Lake Ontario stretches from the western side of St. Catharines, the largest city in the Niagara region of Ontario, Canada. The Queen Elizabeth Way runs right by the water, heading to Toronto.Planet Labs

Slide: 15 /of 26Caption: Caption: Burning Fields, Itumbiara, Brazil. August 9, 2014.
In this August 9th Planet Labs image, a large field is burning near Itumbiara, Brazil.Planet Labs

Slide: 16 /of 26Caption: Caption: Evaporate Mine, Inner Mongolia, China. July 26, 2014.
The basin of Baga Nur, a former salt lake south of Ordos in Inner Mongolia, is mined for salt. Inner Mongolia is rich in rare earth resources and mineral deposits, so many evaporate mines like the one pictured have been built.Planet Labs

Slide: 17 /of 26Caption: Caption: Circular Fields, Şanlıurfa Province, Turkey. October 5, 2014.
Farmers in the Fertile Crescent have relied on irrigation since the dawn of agriculture. Water from reservoirs developed on the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in the past 25 years enabled the expansion of cropland in the region, including these circular fields in Turkey.Planet Labs

Slide: 18 /of 26Caption: Caption: Wuzhong, Ningxia, China. August 14, 2014.
Wuzhong is a rapidly-growing city located in north-central China. The dense urban core is surrounded by fields, likely rice paddies. Irrigation water is brought to the otherwise arid region by the sediment-filled Yellow River, to the northwest (above and left) of the city.Planet Labs

Slide: 19 /of 26Caption: Caption: Ocotillo Wind Project, California, USA. September 22, 2014.
The 80-meter-tall turbines of the Ocotillo Wind project cast long shadows across the Imperial Valley’s desert floor on the morning of Sep. 22, 2014. Each of the 112 turbines is capable of generating 2.37 megawatts of power, for a maximum output of 265 megawatts.Planet Labs

Slide: 20 /of 26Caption: Caption: Suez Canal, Ismailia, Egypt. July 10, 2014.
Ships head north through the Suez Canal, passing by Izbat Abu Sitayt between Lake Timsah to the north, and Great Bitter Lake to the south. The Isamilia Canal, or Sweet Water Canal, runs parallel to the Suez Canal and supplies water to the surrounding regions.Planet Labs

Slide: 21 /of 26Caption: Caption: Longyangxia Dam Solar Park, China. September 29, 2014.
Blue squares in an otherwise empty desert demarcate one of the world’s largest solar power plants. The solar portion of the Longyangxia hydro-solar project, located in China’s Qinghai Province, generates up to 320 Megawatts of power.Planet Labs

Slide: 22 /of 26Caption: Caption:
Coal Mines, Shanxi Province, China. July 31, 2014.
The town of Jingping is surrounded by a few large coal mines. China is the largest coal producer in the world, and Shanxi Province contains most of China’s easily accessible coal, producing more than 300 million metric tonnes annually.Planet Labs

Slide: 23 /of 26Caption: Caption: Comondú-La Purísima Volcanic Field, Mexico. October 1, 2014.
Mexico’s Baja California is home to several clusters of volcanoes, including the Comondú-La Purísima volcanic field. Eruptions in the area began about 11 million years ago, and the most recent may have occurred within the past 12,000 years.
Planet Labs

Slide: 24 /of 26Caption: Caption: Wadi Dib Ring Complex, Egypt. October 1, 2014.
It may look like an impact crater, but instead of being the scar from an incoming meteorite, the Wadi Dib ring complex came from within the Earth itself. The circular structure is the result of an upwelling of magma that solidified into a series of different rock types.Planet Labs

Slide: 25 /of 26Caption: Caption: North of Bakersfield, California, USA. August 5, 2014.
In this image of agricultural fields north of Bakersfield, there is a stark contrast between the irrigated fields and the adjacent ravine-ridden desert. Bakersfield has been the hardest-hit large urban area by the current drought.Planet Labs

Slide: 26 /of 26Caption: Caption: Diyarbakir, Southeastern Anatolia, Turkey. July 14, 2014.
This image captures agricultural lands along the Tigris River, and Diyarbakir’s famous walls, which ring the old city. Made out of basalt, the walls were built during the Byzantine Empire. Recently completed additions to the Diyarbakir Airport are also visible.Planet Labs

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Tracking what’s happening on Earth from space is becoming more and more feasible as Earth-observing satellites increase in number and resolution. The USGS’s Landsat mission has an incredible 40-year record of the planet’s changing landscape, with virtually every spot imaged every eight days. It’s an incredible scientific asset. But what if you could see every bit of the globe, every single day? That opens a new range of possible uses for satellite imagery.

The 2-year-old company is launching dozens—71 so far—minisatellites, a veritable swarm (or flock, as they call it) of nimble imagers. This is a major departure from the prevailing model of designing a single, tremendously powerful (and expensive) Earth-observing satellite and rigorously testing it for years before launching it.

These conventional commercial satellites certainly have greater capabilities and higher resolution than the minisats. For example, Digital Globe’s new Worldview-3, launched in August, is capable of an incredible 31-centimeter (12-inch) resolution—high enough to clearly show small cars, manholes, and even mailboxes. The Planet Labs satellites provide around 5-meter (16-foot) resolution, but their strength is in numbers. Eventually, the company wants to have enough cameras (probably hundreds) in orbit to image the entire planet every 24-hours.

But these little satellites, which measure about 12 inches by 4 inches, have other big advantages.

They are cheap enough to be essentially expendable, so the company can risk sending satellites into space before they are perfected, and continuously update the flock with improved units as it learns from those it’s already launched. This drastically reduces costs by removing the need for rigorous testing to ensure a satellite will perform as expected in orbit—usually a multi-year process. If a minisat design fails or falls short of expectations, Planet Labs just sends up another, better one.

“We can do it small and cheap, so we can afford to take risks and push fast,” Planet Labs software engineer Frank Warmerdam said at last month’s FOSS4G conference on open-source mapping in Portland, Oregon.

The company also keeps costs down by launching minisats with anyone who will take them, into whatever orbit they’ll take them to. Having cameras at varying distances from Earth, however, creates a processing challenge when Planet Lab engineers try to stitch them together. The engineers also are working on eliminating cloud cover from their image mosaics. Once they have enough satellites in orbit and have collected enough overlapping coverage of Earth’s surface, they’ll try using algorithms to choose the best, clearest, least cloudy pixel for every spot.

Warmerdam presented their progress on the cloud problem to a packed room at the FOSS4G conference. He had hoped to have a cloudless global mosaic to show off at the meeting, but they’ve run into some challenging problems.

“One of the real challenges in putting together a mosaic isn’t just getting rid of the clouds, it’s getting rid of the cloud shadows,” Warmerdam said.

Once they succeed, they’ll have created an incredible new resource for tracking change on planet Earth.

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